


The Underpinnings of Companionship

by Freedom_Shamrock



Series: Adrinette April 2018 [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrinette April 2018, Adrinette April 2019, Close to Canon, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Miraculous Fluff Month 2018
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-03
Updated: 2019-04-09
Packaged: 2019-04-17 21:31:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 6,933
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14198097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Freedom_Shamrock/pseuds/Freedom_Shamrock
Summary: An Adrinette April story showing the deepening friendships between Adrien and Marinette.





	1. Out of Sight

**Author's Note:**

> Chapters 1-7 are from Adrinette/Adrienette April 2018  
> Chapters 8-? are for Adrinette/Adrienette April 2019.  
> This is a contiguous story, so the chapters are in chronological order and are connected.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette repeatedly hides Adrien during akuma attacks, before going to take care of someone else.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is for the April 1 prompt, hide. It's a smidge late, but I'm planning on catching up.

The first time it happened, they were studying in the school library.  It had been a rare occasion when he had no extracurricular activities, no photo-shoots, and his father was willing to let him hang out after school for academic purposes.  Alya had started up a Discord study group for the four of them. They each had areas of expertise, and could help the others out when needed. Sometimes it was primarily companionable silence, punctuated by random groans or triumphs as they worked through their increasingly heavy coursework.

It was so nice to actually be able to meet in person for a change, or to not be the one person needing the chat group in order to talk to the others who were all together at the library or Mari's house.  He'd been so preoccupied by the happiness of being a normal fourteen year old that he hadn't considered how he would handle an akuma attack.

He felt the building start to shake, his head snapping up a beat after Marinette's.  "Akuma," she muttered. She let out a sigh as she glanced at her best friend, hastily shoving her stuff in her backpack.  "Please be careful." Her voice was resigned.

"I'm always careful," Alya insisted.

Nino rolled his eyes.  "No lying in front of the cinnamon rolls."  He packed his things up as well.

"Just… give them a little space to do their job," Marinette suggested.  "You have that new telephoto capable camera. You don't need to get close enough to get captured.  Again."

"Yeah, yeah."  She pulled the straps over her shoulders, hesitating just long enough to fasten the hip and chest strap that kept her bag from bouncing around too much while she ran.  "It's a balance, Mari. Gotta be close enough to get the action and scoop, but far enough to not get scooped." She grinned.

Nino followed suit with his backpack.  "I'll **try** to keep her from the epicenter."

Once they left, Marinette's eyes fell on him.  "Oh. Adrien. We need to get you someplace safe."  She grabbed his wrist and all but hauled him bodily out of his chair and through the library.

"Uhh, you too," he said.  How was he going to get her to a good hiding place while not sticking around himself?  The next thing he knew, she was shoving him into a storage cupboard outside the art room.

"Here," she said, pushing him gently onto a stool that really didn't belong in the cupboard.  "There's not really room for two, so you stay here. There should be snacks on the shelf if you need them."

He glanced down to the shelf on his right and found a plastic box holding granola bars.  Was he taking her akuma shelter? "What about you?" he asked, standing up.

She smiled at him, looking confident and pleased.  "I'm just going to make sure anyone else in the school is safely tucked away."  

It would give him the out he needed, but he still felt guilty about taking this prepared spot.  "How about you stay, and I go do that?" he suggested.

She shook her head.  "I know where all the shelter cubicles are," she pointed out.  "Plus, we need to be able to reassure your father that you were safe, or he'll never let you come to study group again."

He sank back onto the stool.  He couldn't argue with either of those points.

"Chat Noir and Ladybug will have things set to rights in no time."  She slowly closed the door. "And you can watch the fight's status on your phone.  There should be a couple of chargers in the outlet there. Hopefully one works for yours."

With that, she was gone.  He waited a few minutes, taking the time to marvel over the little safety cubicle, stocked with bottled water, a blanket, and a flashlight.  He wondered who'd come up with the idea and if all schools had them.

"We are going to go help Ladybug, right?" Plagg asked, finally coming out from Adrien's shirt pocket.

"Yeah," Adrien said, shaking himself away from his train of thought.  "You know the drill. Plagg, claws out!"

* * *

It happened several more times over the next month.  Once when study group was at Marinette's house after school, another time when the four of them were having lunch in the park, and again when they were heading to a small cinema for a film festival.  Every time, Alya would dart off to get what footage she could for her blog, her boyfriend reluctantly following.

They were on a school field trip when Adrien finally had a chance to return the favor.  They were visiting L'Institut Supérieur des Arts Appliqués. Although it had been well over a year since his father or mother had been invited to speak here, bringing him along as an assistant or model, he knew his way around.

Wrapping his hand around Marinette's wrist, he gave her a gentle tug.  "This way. I know exactly where you can hide."

"But what about you?" she asked, following his lead.

He flashed her a smile.  "This time I know my way around, so it's my turn to make sure you're safe.  I've got a place planned out for myself, too. Okay?"

He heard her take a slow breath before nodding.  "Okay."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 30 minute speed write.


	2. Teaming

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Have a little fluffy Adrinette solo gaming time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Adrinette April 2018, day 2 prompt, gaming. It's a smidge late, but I'm working on catching up.

"Oooh, nice shot!" Marinette said, pressing the buttons to make her mech flip over Adrien's.  "But it's not going to be enough to save you." She glanced away from the screen to flash him a grin.

"Don't be so sure, Mari," Adrien countered, frantically mashing the buttons on his controller.  "I've been playing with Max and Markov, and they taught me a few things."

She giggled, continuing to pound his mech into the ground.  He made a strong comeback near the end of the game, but it wasn't quite in time to grant him a victory.  "Much closer that time." She glanced over, glad to see he was still smiling and happy. The butterflies in her stomach threw a little party when he met her eyes, but they didn't riot to rise up and choke her the way they would have earlier in the year.

"You do realize how amazing you are, right?"  He looked straight at her, his eyebrows arching into his sincere questioning expression.

Where she once would have fallen out of her chair in an excess of flustered energy, she could now reach over and give his forearm a gentle squeeze.  "I'm not the only amazing person here right now." His apparent need to make his friends see how much he valued them and his father randomly changing his schedule so he couldn't hang out that really helped her see that what he needed most, were friends.  Strong friendships couldn't make up for the fact that his Gabriel was an awful father, but they could provide Adrien the support to offset the damage. His friendships could help prevent akumatization, and if she was being honest with herself, he was a prime candidate for it. That realization paired with her Ladybug determination had changed her interactions with him for the better.

"We really need to pair you up to play with my dad on an evening when you can stick around," she said.

"Your dad really plays?" he asked.  "I thought he was teasing when he mentioned that before."

"Oh he plays, all right," Marinette said.  "He's taught me a lot of what I know. We game together at least once a week."  She lowered her voice to a whisper. "Don't tell him I said this, but, I may be the reigning UMS queen, my only saving grace against him is that I'm faster."

Adrien's sunny laughter filled the room.

"Want to team up for the next game?"  She couldn't help but smile in response to his happiness.

"It's the only way I'm going to win a game," he said.  "But I thought you preferred to go solo."

"Solo is fine sometimes," Marinette said.  He wasn't wrong about how she used to play, anyway.  "But if there's one thing I've learned from Chat Noir and Ladybug, it's that working as a team can really make a difference."  It was more true than she could ever tell him.

"Yeah?" he asked.

Marinette nodded.  "Before this year, I used to…"  How did she want to phrase this.  "I was friendly with my classmates, but I wasn't really close with anyone.  I was kind of in my own world a lot of the time, and tended to do my own thing."  She shrugged. "I guess you could say I was so focused on my designs that nothing else seemed very important."

"What changed?" he asked, turning toward her and leaning on his knees.

So much had changed, but a lot of it she couldn't share.  Still, even that boiled down to one thing. "Alya. She was new at the same time as you, and she really helped me come out of my shell."

He beamed at her.  "I'm glad." He fiddled with his remote for a moment.  "You and Nino have done the same thing for me, and I'm really grateful."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 30 minute speed write.
> 
> I don't love this chapter, but it has it's moments.


	3. On Point

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette can't stand the idea that Adrien doesn't have a cheering section at his fencing tournaments.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is for the April 3 prompt, fencing.

"Are you sure you won't require tickets for guests?" Mr. D'Argencourt asked, looking puzzled.

Adrien shrugged.  "My father will be unable to attend."

Marinette mentally added "again" to the end of that statement.  They must have been talking about the tournament coming up over the weekend.

Their fencing instructor looked like he'd just eaten a particularly sour plum, even more so than usual.  "Are there friends who will be attending with you?" he suggested. "As a competitor, you are eligible for three free tickets.

Adrien shook his head.  "No, sir. I'll be on my own… with the rest of the team."  He glanced over to the practice ring. "Oh, it looks like Kagami is ready to practice with me."  he gestured, hasilly taking his leave.

Marinette frowned.  It wasn't right. Adrien never had people there specifically for him.  Sure, her parents and Alya cheered for the whole team, but that wasn't the same.  "Mr. D'Argencourt?" She spoke quietly, watching their coach as he observed his star students.

"Yes, Marinette?"  He redirected his gaze to her.  

"If I can find people who want to attend in support of Adrien, could they have his tickets?" she asked, an idea forming in her head.  She'd need to get on it right after practice, if she wanted to pull it off.

Their instructor's eyes narrowed briefly as he looked at her.  "Hmmm. If nearly any other student asked, I'd assume they were just trying to get more tickets for themselves."  Marinette's eyes went wide and she started to shake her head, but he continued before she could adequately protest.  "But you are **not** any other student."  He opened a folder and pulled out two envelopes, handing them to her.  "You're a good fencer and an even better friend."

Pleased by the unexpected praise, Marinette nodded.  "Thank you, sir."

* * *

The tournament was scheduled for Saturday, which only gave her a day and a half to rally a support section for Adrien.  She started with a message to the class chat, minus Adrien, of course. Tikki read the responses aloud, her little paws zipping over Marinette's phone with responses while her holder marked up a large rectangle of fabric, pinning carefully clipped swatches as her design came to life.

"Oooh," Tikki squealed.

"Was that a good oooh?" Marinette asked around a mouthful of pins.  "It sounded like a good oooh."

"Chloe just volunteered to cover the cost of tickets for everyone you don't have tickets for," Tikki said, darting over to nuzzle Marinette's cheek.  "She asked you to get her a total by Saturday morning, and she'll take it from there."

"Really?  Ow!" In her surprise, Marinette jabbed her finger with a pin.

"Really!"  Tikki flew back to monitor the phone.  "Anything for **her** Adrikins."

Marinette rolled her eyes, but grinned.  She knew he didn't love the nickname, but this was one time she and Chloe could agree and work together.  "Oh, we should text Luka, too." He wasn't in their class, but he'd invited Adrien to join the Kitty Section, so he counted as a friend, too.

"Great idea!"  Tikki poked at the phone a bit.  "You're a great friend Marinette," she said happily.

Marinette looked up and smiled at her kwami.  "It's not all I want to be," she admitted. "But it's not a bad thing, either."

* * *

Marinette stood with her teammates and their instructor, awaiting their turn to enter the arena.  They'd warmed up together while the tournament judges and audience took their places. She'd had to turn the final stages of her plan over to Chloe, a terrifying prospect, but the girl had been absolutely thrilled to take an obvious leadership role when they talked on the phone that morning.

As they filed into the large, well-lit arena, a cheer went up. Marinette watched as Adrien's gaze moved from the back of their coach's shoulder to the crowd.  Near the front, there was a large group of their classmates and friends, sitting under a banner held up by her father and Nino. Adrien's feet faltered as he read the banner Marinette had finished stitching last night.

To the victor go the foils!  
Put a point on it, Adrien!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 30 minute speed write.
> 
> I'll be back to this story-line for day 13.


	4. Allowed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette and Adrien have been assigned to work together on the latest science/engineering project.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is for the April 13 prompt, group project.

"How's that coming?" Adrien asked, not looking up from where he was working at her desk, a needle nose plier in one hand, and free-standing magnifying glass on a boom between his face and the wiring he was working on.

"Mostly well," Marinette replied, glancing up briefly, more to verify that she wasn't being rude, before turning her gaze back to the mix of colorful parts in front of her.  "I'm almost ready to add the electronics." She took her X-Acto knife to trim off a spot where a button wasn't fitting quite right through the facing. "Just one more adjustment, and I think the box is ready."

"I'm a little behind, then," he said.

"You're not behind," she corrected.  "Your part is just taking a smidge longer than mine.  It could have easily been the other way around." She'd expected it to be the other way, in fact.  "This just means I can run down and get us snacks while I wait for you to finish that bit."

"Oooh," he groaned appreciatively.  "You planned this, didn't you. And it's perfect."  He looked up then and gave her a genuine smile, a little wider than his model smile, and much warmer.  "I love getting to work with you on projects."

"You just like my ready access to snacks," she accused.  "And my parents compulsive tendency to feed my friends." Teasing was one of the nicest things about getting more comfortable around him.  He was just a lot of fun.

He giggled.  "Yeah. That's it.  It has nothing to do with the warm atmosphere of your house, or the fact that you're a crazy creative genius and hard worker."

"We both participated equally on this," she pointed out, setting down her parts and getting to her feet.  "I'll be back. Any requests?"

"Anything's fine, thank you," he replied, and she recognized it as his automatic polite reaction.

"I know you'd eat anything, but I'd be happy to check and see if we have something you particularly like, or just really feel like having."  It annoyed her that he went so far out of his way to avoid being a bother, that he didn't even let himself ask for things when he was with friends.  "You're allowed to tell me what you really want. You know that, right?"

His hands went stil for a moment and he gave a tiny nod.  "Uhm… yes. Thank you, Mari."

"You're welcome," she said."Now what should I bring you, if we have it?"

Still holding his tools, he rested his hands on her desk and turned toward her.  Something about him seemed bashful all of a sudden, maybe the slight curving of his back, and the way his eyes flicked to  the side. "You know those square pastries that taste a bit like croissants, but have chocolate in them?"

"Pain au chocolat, yes," she confirmed.

"I'd really like one of those."  The tips of his ears went bright pink.  "But I'd eat anything, so…" He shrugged and turned back to his wiring.

Marinette made a quick visit to the bakery fetching several pain au chocolat.  She stopped in the kitchen for drinks before returning to the room. "I'm back.  Did you miss me?" she asked.

'Very much yes," he said drily.  "It was as though you'd taken all the life out of the room when you left.  I began to fear I would die alone." She was giggling when he set raised his hands in the air in triumph.  "Done!" He rolled his shoulders as he turned his chair toward her. "Ohhhhh," he murmured, catching sight of the platter.  "You got them! You're my favorite person ever."

She handed him the plate.  "Here. Have something while I put this one together.  If we can get the second one done in roughly the same amount of time, we should be able to get in a couple of games before you have to go.  Testing the prototypes, you know." She winked.

"Once again, loving the way you think, Mari."  He shot finger guns at her, before pushing the tray to the side and handing her the component he'd been working on.

Taking the mess of tiny electronics back to her spot, Marinette seated the little circuitboard into the box she'd made out of lacquered cardboard and polymer clay.  While Adrien ate, she adjusted the spring-loaded buttons and finished the assembly. "Ta da!" She held it up for him to see. For their engineering project they'd designed a better controller for gaming, one that allowed faster reactions, while feeling intuitive and comfortable to hold.

"We are acing this," Adrien said proudly.  "And I bet we're going to get commission requests.  Max is totally going to want one. Nino, too."

"Well if you get tired of modeling, and the design thing doesn't take for me, we could open up our own little business."  Though she said it as a joke, it was a nice idea to hold onto for her daydreams later. He'd been a lot of fun to work with, and she hoped they could get paired up again soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 30 minute speed write.
> 
> I'm caught up again! And I have plans for every prompt except the last one, so hopefully I can stay on top of these.


	5. Fragile Freedom

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien and Marinette bump into each other when he is, once again hiding from his minders.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is for the April 25 prompt, sneaking out.

Marinette had just finished a very successful brainstorming design session on a walk down one of the beautiful but less-tourist-frequented streets of Paris.  It was a little narrower, and crooked, with a mix of classic row houses and apartments that just screamed of Paris to her. She'd grown up in the busy city, and didn't mind being surrounded by people so often, but once in a while an out-of-the-way adventure was exactly what she needed.

As she walked, she looked down at some of her rough drawings showing buildings and the design features that translated nicely into clothing.  She startled when she crashed into someone bigger. "Oh, aaagh!" Her spiral bound book flew up into the air as she stumbled and tried to catch it and herself.

"Oh, I'm  **so** sorry Marinette," Adrien's voice identified him before she could fully register what had happened.

Once everything stopped moving, she found herself caught in an extreme dip in one arm, while his other hand had magically caught her book.  "Adrien?"

He smiled shyly as he eased her back to her feet.  "I really need to watch where I'm going better." He shook his head.  "Are you all right?"

She nodded hastily.  "You've seen me actually fall from worse than a minor collision."  She bit her lip, wishing she hadn't mentioned that. She'd gotten much better around him since getting to know him a bit more, but she still sometimes slipped back into flustered mode.  "Didn't you have a photoshoot this morning?" She didn't track his schedule like a rabid fan now, but he'd mentioned it yesterday in class. With a break in rainy weather in the forecast, everyone was talking about their Saturday plans.

"I did, but it wrapped up early."  His small grin made her suspicious, and then his hand went to the back of his neck.  "Since I'm not due home for another two hours, I kind of snuck off before something else could get added to my schedule."

She faked a gasp.  "Adrien Agreste, are you on the run  **again** ?"

His cheeks went faintly pink and he shrugged.  "You're my favorite accomplice on these adventures."

"You have a new campaign out," she pointed out.

"Oh… yeah."  He hesitated a moment.  "You saw that?"

She patted his arm gently.  "I live in Paris. There's no way to have not seen it."  She smirked at him. "You glorious celestial being, you."

His slight face went full-on blushtastrophe, and he looked down, though that didn't hide the reddened tops of his ears.  "Oh god," he muttered. "You know I don't write the copy for these ads, right?"

She giggled.  "Of course I know."  He was the most down-to-earth person she knew, and he really didn't like the way his father's marketing team made him out to be some unattainable perfection.  "And I won't tease you about it too much. I just wanted to ask how bad the fan mobbing is going this time around and whether you're tempting fate a bit too much, being on your own again."

His shoulders drooped and he straightened up, catching her eyes.  For a moment, he looked utterly defeated. "Fair question. It's been pretty bad."  He sighed. "But sometimes I just…" His words faltered and he glanced away.

"Just want to be yourself?" she asked.  He'd hinted at it in some of their passing conversations when they were working on their science project.  "Just want to be a regular guy?"

His smile was rueful when he turned back to her.  "You're perceptive, Mari."

She shrugged.  "I've gotten to know you, and while there's… stuff you don't really share, the subtext is there for someone paying attention."  She eased her sketchbook out of his hand and put it away. "All right. Did you have a destination in mind for today's adventure?"

He shook his head.  "This was much more spur of the moment."

"How much time do you have?" she asked, trying to figure out the best way to keep him out of the public eye while giving him the opportunity to relax and just be himself, Adrien the boy, not dreamy, celestial, famous Adrien Agreste.  They really need to plan these outings better.

"About two hours," he replied.

She nodded.  "Ever been to the Cinémathèque Française film museum?" she asked.  At this point in the season, it wouldn't be very busy, and it limited their exposure to random fans.

"I've never even heard of it," he said.

Marinette pulled out her phone and sent a quick text to Nino.  "We should be able to get there without too much trouble. I know the back ways."

"You'd go with me?" he asked, looking pleased.

"Yeah." Her phone chirped.  "And Nino can meet us there.  He's been wanting to hit it up for ages."

His hands shot out and wrapped around hers.  "Thank you Marinette. You really are amazing."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this doesn't feel too stilted. I was interrupted a lot on this one.
> 
> Planning on going straight to today's prompt (day 28) and wrapping up this storyline in my effort to get caught back up.


	6. Cosplaying Average People

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette has a detailed plan to help Adrien hide from his minders in the future. Hopefully, it isn't too much for her to endure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the second chapter posted today, so if you haven't read about Adrien sneaking out, you should check out chapter 5 first.
> 
> This chapter is for the April 28 prompt, disguises

"Okay, so if this sneaking around in plain sight is going to be a regular thing for us, we need to have a better plan," Marinette said, leading Adrien up to her room.

"Fair deal," Adrien agreed.  "Do you have anything in mind?"

The grin Marinette shot him made it clear she did.  "I'm **so** glad you asked."

"Should I be worried?" he asked, sounding more amused than concerned.

Marinette let him wonder in silence until they got to her room, and she closed the door.  "You like cosplay, right?"

He shot her a cheesy wink and finger guns.  "You know it."

"Then you'll love this."  She gestured grandly to an old style trunk he'd never seen in her room before.  "This is for your use. My parents know to let you into my room if you stop by and give them the codewords."

"Wait… codewords?" he asked, puzzled, yet clearly intrigued.

"If we're being covert, we may as well go all the way with it."  She grinned and knelt to tip the top open. "This is **your** disguise bin.  I've prepared four distinctive looks for you, each very different from the others, and from your usual look."  She pulled out some black fabric. "Today, we're going to try out Adrien Agreste, goth edition."

He stared at her in amazement.  "Wuh? Goth?" His face lit up. "Oh my gosh, Mari!  Show me!" He clapped his hands together, practically vibrating in his excitement.

She handed over the fabric.  "Get dressed, and I'll help you with the styling."  She rubbed her hands together. "Then we're going out to do something fun."  

He let out an adorable little squeal as he hugged the clothes, before setting the outfit on the chaise.  

When she saw his hands grasp the hem of his shirt, she turned her back on him,.  "Let me know when you're ready." More than once, when she needed his modeling assistance, she'd been treated to Adrien spontaneously stripping, without even thinking about his surroundings.

"Ohhh," he whispered.  "This fits so well!"

She heard the clinking of buckles.

"My father would **never** let me have something this cool,"  There was more shuffling. "Okay. How's it look."

Taking a breath to brace herself, she turned around.  Focusing on the design details helped her not melt into a puddle of goo.  He was adorable. She moved forward the adjust the buckled straps that ran down his out-seam from thigh to ankle.  "I kind of thought these would be suit you." She stepped back, then reached to flatten the collar on the black short-sleeve shirt.  It had bold silver snaps down the front and a few D-rings attached at the shoulder, over the spot where a breast pocket would go and near the waist on one side.  "How's it feel?"

"Perfect."  He bounced a bit more.  "Can I look?"

She nodded.  "Yep. Then come back here for styling."

* * *

Marinette walked through the park with Adrien at her side, and despite the crowd, not a single person gave them a second glance. After she'd powdered his hair and face, she'd left him to toy with the makeup while she also changed into an all black ensemble.  The hem of her dress' swing skirt swished against her thighs a few inches above her socks. She'd been shocked by his smokey eye skills, demonstrating her perky goth bend with purple eyeshadow and wide black winged liner.

"So what other looks have you selected for me, M?" he asked, using the nickname he decided needed to go with Marinette, goth edition.

"There's steampunk, that one's bold and uses a lot of color."  She wanted to hold off on that one because she expected in might break her.  She also didn't have a companion piece ready yet, and that was part of the fun.  "Then you've got American preppy slash frat boy, depending on your accessories. I've attached a wig to the cap so you'll be a brunette if you go that route."

He laughed out loud, joyful sound that made all her work worth while.

 "And the final style is artsy, which is going to be hilarious, actually.  It's definitely not something your father would expect to see you in." She expected that one to be nearly as good a disguise as the goth one.

"I can't believe how well this is working," he said.  "Though at the same time, I'm totally not surprised your plan's a success."

"I have some good ideas," she teased.

"Yeah," he agreed.  "And the rest are great.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 30 minute speed write, done while watching those wee Chinese dancers again.


	7. All Steamed Up and Nowhere to Go

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette meets Adrien at her house to dress up in disguises and keep him company. It turns out she has lots of surprises for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Miraculous Fluff August prompt #9, Friends to Lovers

Marinette dashed into the bakery, warm from her run. When she glanced up and caught her maman's eyes, she relaxed.

"He's upstairs Cupcake," Maman said, grinning. "He engaged the secret code word and everything."

"Great." She continued her path to the steps.

"Have fun, text us when we should expect you home," Maman called.

When she got to her room, Adrien was already there, his disguise bin open, and it's contents draped carefully over her chaise and desk chairs.  He stood in the center of the room, considering his options and yanking at his hair, messing it further with each pass of his hands.

"Are you okay?" she asked, resting a hand on his arm without even meaning to. "You look really stressed."  It wasn't a surprise, given the panicked text he'd sent fifteen minutes ago, letting her know he was on his way over.

"I am." He huffed and shook his head. "I just learned that father plans to double my lessons over summer break." His words were clipped and angry. "And photoshoots.  So fucking many photoshoots."

She sighed, feeling herself droop.  Was Gabriel really that insensitive and stupid?  Was he  **trying** to get his son akumatized. "So you made yourself scarce."

He finally looked her in the face. "Did you finish the steampunk one? Can we do that?"

"You want company?" she asked.  Sometimes he was content to dress in one of the special disguises and go out on his own, exploring Paris as the teen he wasn't allowed to be.  Other times, he wanted company.

"You said you were free." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry. I shouldn't have assumed…"

"I'd like to hang out with you," she said quickly, wanting to correct any misconceptions before they shot her in the foot. "I just wasn't sure if you wanted company."

He nodded, a small, almost fragile, smile on his face. "If it's you, I mean. Yeah."

"I  **did** finish the steampunk."  She patted a pile of folded clothing. "Put yours on while I fish mine out of the closet." She grinned at him. "We're going to be fabulous."

* * *

She hadn't quite banked on Adrien's awed expression when she returned. She would have loved to have him get the full finished effect, but that just wasn't in the cards, and she was okay with it. She wore a tiered lacy skirt in brown.  It hit the middle of her thighs in the front, and was brushing the floor in the back. His vest was made of the same color, and it was still flapping open, it's chains and rivets jingling.

"What do you think?" she asked, striking a demure pose, her face tilted down as she looked at him through her eyelashes.

He let out a soft sigh. "I… you… wow.  That's…" He shook himself a little. "It's amazing." His smile was filled with gentle awe. "You're incredible, and you look incredible, and I'm going to shut up before I say something stupid."

She giggled. "Finish up with the clothes there, captain smartypants. We have places to be." She sat on the chaise to pull on her thigh-high socks, a muted rust that matched the damask of her overbust corset and his trousers. They both had white long sleeve shirts.  Hers was adorned with ruffles peeking out of the corset and running to her collar. His had loose sleeves, snug at the wrist, much like his pants were snug at the ankles.

Once they were both dressed, she fetched the accessories she'd only just completed.  "Your hat, sir." She handed him a shortened stovepipe hat with a band in the same fabric as his pants. A pair of aviator goggles were perched on the brim.  Her hat was a tiny mimic of his, with gears stitched onto the band when she realized feathers wouldn't do. She made a tiny bun off to one side of her head with a small section of hair, giving her an anchor point for the comb.

When they were done, she pulled him over to her mirror, popping a pair of blue-lensed wire-rimmed glasses onto his face. "Hmm," she murmured.  "I don't see supermodel here, do you?" She raised an eyebrow as she glanced sidelong at him.

"You're killing me, Mimi," he whispered. He'd embraced giving them different personas for each of his disguise sets. Somehow he'd picked all the names.  "If anyone should be the model, it's you."

She laughed. "Silly Adric."  She patted her hip pouch, content that her cell phone and Tikki were both secure."Wasn't there someplace you wanted to be?"

He slowly reached out and caught her hand, brushing the ruffles out of the way as he bent to kiss her knuckles. "Yeah." They were both blushing. "Since we're all dressed up and all…"  He licked his lips, looking oddly nervous. "I was hoping you'd go to dinner with me."

There was no reason for him to be nervous, unless… She stared at him a moment. "You want to go to dinner like this?"

He nodded. "I was hoping it could be a date," he said hopefully.  Her hand still rested on his, but he opened his fingers in case she wanted to let go. He let out a shaky breath. "But if you don't want to--"

"I want to," she said quickly, finally getting her mouth to work. She closed her fingers around his, hoping that gave him the answer he needed. "I'd love to."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 30 minute speed write.
> 
> I didn't quite reach the point I wanted to with this one because describing clothes takes a long time! But w00t! I got two in today. I really can catch up... maybe. :)


	8. (Not) Just Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's nearly summer break, and Adrien's having a rough day. Fortunately, he knows just where to go for a pick-me-up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Adrienette April prompt #1, Just Friends.   
> This was going to be the prompt Hide Me, but the just friends element presented strongly enough that I had to go that route with it instead.

Marinette was double-checking the measurements on her latest pattern, when she got a text from her mom. Without looking, she reached for the phone and swiped the screen to wake it up.

**Maman:** Incoming boyfriend. He looks extra harried today.

A moment later, she heard the apartment door open and close before there were footsteps dashing up her stairs. She turned to see Adrien pop up through her open trap door. He had a knit cap that was entirely too much for the season yanked down over his ears. And his eyes held the panicked look of a trapped animal.

"Hey," she called gently. "You okay?"

He bolted for her and she barely stood up in time to catch him in a firm hug. His state of mind was clear from the tight grip of his fingers digging in to her back.

"Oh Adrien," she whispered softly.  "What happened?"

He shuddered and shook his head. "Not yet," he muttered.

She pushed her hand into his hair, something they'd recently discovered was soothing to him.  They were still new at this dating thing, but hugs and cuddles had come naturally. He'd always been physically affectionate to his friends, and she suspected it was because he got so little touch at home.

"You on the lam again?" she asked.

"Yeah, father…" He cut off and let out a frustrated whine, loosening his grip on her.

"Where's your cell phone?" she asked.  There was no way Gabriel didn't track it.

"It's on my desk in my room," he admitted.  "I don't think anyone will even check on me if it shows up where it's  **supposed** to."

"Are we staying in or going out, then?" she asked. Lately, well, since their steampunk date, he'd preferred she go with him when he was exploring Paris in normal person cosplay.

"Let's stay here," he said.  "Just for a little bit."

"Do you need snuggles?" she asked.

He relaxed in her arms at the very suggestion. "Oh god, yes."

"And later, if you're feeling up to it, I can take my preppy American frat boy boyfriend out for ice cream."  She'd also found that being cooped up agitated him after a certain point. She suspected Gabriel's A1 parenting and practical jailing of his son had contributed strongly to that reaction.

"You're so amazing, Marinette," he whispered, his voice shaky.  "You always know exactly what I need."

"We're friends."

"Not  **just** friends," he happily pointed out.

She giggled, remembering a time when she'd been so thoroughly friendzoned that she'd given up her crush as hopeless.  It had done wonders for her ability to talk to him, and ironically brought them much closer together. "True," she agreed.  "But I think couples should also be really good friends. And we are. It means we know each other. You always see when my anxiety is getting the upper hand; no one else is as good at it as you."

They slowly let go of each other, and he peered down into her face.  "I just pay attention to you, Mari. It's not like it's hard."

"And there you go," she said, beaming at him.  "I pay attention to you. When I was truly just your friend, I learned a lot about you.  And now I get to put it to good use." She reached up and brushed his bangs out of his eyes.  "I care a lot about you Adrien. I want you to be happy."

And with that, all signs of stress vanished.  "You make me happy." He leaned in and kissed her cheek.  "Thank you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 30 minute speed write.
> 
> I'm not going to be hitting all the Adrienette April prompts (too much on my plate at the moment), but I'm going to fit in those that I can.


	9. Hiding in Plain Sight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette and Adrien go out for a stroll disguised as American tourists.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Adrinette April 2019, prompt #4, hide me.  
> Directly follows chapter 8.

"Hey Ade, my app says Andre's just two blocks over," Marinette said, gesturing vaguely to a side street. "Want to ruin your diet."  She grinned at him, arching one eyebrow. He delighted in doing things that would give his father a stroke if he knew about them, particularly on days like this.

Adrien's face lit up. "You always know just what I need. Thank you."  With the warmer weather, she worried about him overheating under the wig cap and brown-hair-fringed baseball hat she'd made. She'd gone as light on his makeup as she could while still doing a bit of contouring to alter his lines. 

"You're welcome." While his steampunk outfit was her favorite, it just suited him so perfectly, she was perhaps most impressed by this one. American frat boy Ade looked nothing like her boyfriend Adrien. And it was an appallingly easy transformation to make. "I can't believe you can pull of this look so well."  She shook her head.

"Don't underestimate me, babe," he drawled in English. "I got this whole appearances thing in the bag."

She giggled and shook her head. "Oh my god. You have the persona down, too." 

"I'm a… what's it? A method actor."  He nodded decisively. "Yeah. And I take my craft seriously."  He'd talked about expanding into acting, since he'd gotten to do some with his modeling.  At least until he was able to figure out what he wanted to go to school for. He was appallingly bored with the business classes his father had selected for his summer enrichment.

In the walk toward Andre's cart, they were hailed by two different groups of American tourists.  One group wanted a photo of themselves, and thought their fellow countrymen would be more obliging than the locals.  The other was a pair of high school students who were completely turned around and had lost their group. They were grateful and surprised when Ade and Annette were able to give them the less well-known but faster route back to their meet-up point.

"I'm really torn," Adrien said quietly as they turned the corner and Andre came into sight.  "I mean… I love the steampunk getup. It's so well made, and you look so sweet in yours, and I feel like it should be my favorite."

"But?" she asked, grinning.  It wasn't the first time they'd been totally on the same page.

"This outfit is so fun. I bet I could walk past my father or Nathalie and they wouldn't know me." His sheepish face looked a bit different with the makeup, but his eyes still crinkled on the edges.

"This is probably the better disguise," she agreed.  "But if we're talking about all around favorites, I'm going to stick with the one that's more likely to make me melt at the sight of your hotness."

His startled laugh was nearly a howl. "You think I'm hot," he sang smugly as they joined the queue for ice cream.

"Pffft," she snorted.  "Eighty-three percent of Paris objectively thinks you're hot, even if they aren't attracted to you.  Nine percent are self-inhibiting and live in denial. And eight percent are wired in such a way that they don't find supermodels with delicious abs appealing."

"Welcome to Andre's ice--" The cheerful man's greeting faltered as his smile slowly morphed into a curious assessment of them.  After a moment, he chuckled, shaking his head. "Oh my. A couple of delightful American tourists who I have  **absolutely** never seen before.  Welcome to Paris."

Marinette grinned.  She hadn't expected to fool him. "Thank you so much." She didn't have the heart to butcher her own language to stay in character.  "We're so glad to be here."

"It's a good thing you speak French, Annette," Adrien said in perfect unaccented English.

"When we go to China, you get to translate for me," she teased back, though her English wasn't nearly as good.

"I have just the treat for you two," Andre said, his hands moving in their graceful dance to assemble his famous lover's ice cream.  "Blackberry for her hair, peach for his lips, that Paris has  **never** been graced by in the past," he wiggled his eyebrows a bit.  "And a disguise of chocolate shavings sprinkled generously over the top."  He held it out to them.

"It's a masterpiece," Adrien whispered, slipping the glacier some bills.  "Thanks, Andre."

Andre bowed slightly before turning to the next customer.

"How do you suppose he knew?" Adrien asked as they settled on the low brick wall surrounding a garden.

"Magic," Marinette said, entirely serious.  "We know there's magic. We've seen it in our heroes and the akumas, too. I bet there are all sorts of magic out there that we just don't notice."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sitting in the hallway outside of dance class again! 
> 
> Sorry this took so long. I've been swamped with work (yay money!), busy with tax prep (turned out ok!), and family shenanigans. Whew! I'm trying to squeeze some of these in, but I have a Something Familiar original novella release to prep for, so that may take away a few days of fanfic writing.

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to visit me over on [Tumblr](http://freedom-shamrock.tumblr.com/). If you have constructive feedback or need to discuss an aspect of this story, I've found that sort of thing tends to work better via direct messaging or asks than the comments section here.
> 
> I had a horrible time with the title for this. I wanted to use fellowship and buttress or underpinnings, because puns and geekery, but most of those just sounded like bad porn titles.


End file.
